EXPLAINING LABOR'S WIN AT THE 1993 AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL ELECTION*

This paper investigates Labor's victory at the 1993 Australian Federal election. In the aftermath of the election a variety of explanations emerged endeavoring to account for the result. From these explanations factors claimed as important are investigated for their influence on vote choice and importantly their contribution to the parties ' shares of the vote. Confirming aspects of some of the explanations, the factors which gave the ALP the greatest benefits were the opposition's proposed goods and services tax, and the medicare and health, and industrial relations issues. The coalition benefited from Labor's employment record, the economic management issue, and from the belief that it was time to change government. This study demonstrates that careful analysis of survey data can provide accurate and detailed accounts of election outcomes. We discuss how explanations of election outcomes in general can be improved and the implications of the study's findings for the next election. The Australian Labor Party's (ALP) victory at the 1993 Australian Federal election was, at the very least, remarkable. With high unemployment, a bur